DEUTSCH · Guten Tag
Learn German online with a private tutor
The most widely spoken native language in Europe, and the one most often tied to a concrete work or study move.
- Native name
- Deutsch
- Speakers
- 135M
- Hours to fluency
- ~828
- Lesson length
- 25 / 50 / 80
FREE GUIDE
A free German guide
Free with a KoloLingo account — read it online or download it.
How long does German actually take?
The US Foreign Service Institute has been timing this for decades, and the figure everyone quotes is only half of what they publish. FSI puts German at 36 weeks — 828 classroom hours for an English speaker to reach professional working proficiency. But FSI also states that a typical week is 23 hours in class and 17 hours of self-study, so the real total is closer to 1440 hours of work. The pace below divides that full total rather than the classroom half, which is why these numbers are longer than the ones you have seen elsewhere:
One lesson a week
about 11.1 years
≈2.5 hours a week including homework
Two lessons a week
about 5.5 years
≈5 hours a week including homework
Intensive — daily
about 2 years
≈15 hours a week including homework
Worth saying plainly: that figure is for full professional proficiency, which is a much higher bar than most learners need. Holding a real conversation in German usually arrives at somewhere between a fifth and a quarter of the way in.
What the German levels mean
Teachers describe lessons using the Common European Framework. Not sure of yours? Take the free German level test — twelve minutes, no account — and your teacher starts from your result.
- A1Beginner
Introduce yourself and handle very simple, predictable exchanges.
- A2Elementary
Cope with routine tasks — shopping, directions, simple description of your background.
- B1Intermediate
Handle most travel situations and explain opinions on familiar topics.
- B2Upper-intermediate
Hold a fluent, spontaneous conversation with a native speaker without strain on either side.
- C1Advanced
Use the language flexibly for social, academic and professional purposes.
- C2Proficient
Understand virtually everything heard or read, and express yourself with precision.
Kinds of German lesson
Teachers list what they specialise in, so you can match on purpose rather than on price alone.
German tutors for beginners
Teachers who work with absolute beginners every day and can run a first German lesson entirely in a language you share.
Conversational German tutors
Lessons that are mostly you talking. For learners who can read German but freeze when someone answers back.
Business German tutors
Meetings, email, negotiation and presentations — German for the situations your job actually puts you in.
German tutors for kids
Teachers experienced with children, who keep German lessons short, build them around games, and keep a parent in the loop.
German exam preparation tutors
Teachers who know the German exam formats, mark to the real rubric, and work backwards from your test date.
Intensive German courses
Several German lessons a week with homework between them, for learners with a deadline rather than a hobby.
Native German speaking tutors
Teachers who grew up speaking German, for accent work, idiom and the register textbooks never cover.
German grammar tutors
Focused work on the German structures that keep breaking, with exercises built from your own mistakes.
German exams teachers prepare for
TestDaF
Test Deutsch als Fremdsprache
Goethe-Zertifikat
Goethe-Institut German certification
telc
telc Deutsch — German certificates issued by telc
DTZ
Deutsch-Test für Zuwanderer, the integration course's scaled A2–B1 German test
ÖSD
Österreichisches Sprachdiplom Deutsch
DSH
Deutsche Sprachprüfung für den Hochschulzugang
Fachsprachprüfung
Fachsprachprüfung for doctors trained abroad (German state chambers)
DTB
Deutsch-Test für den Beruf (BAMF / telc)
Questions about learning German
How long does it take to learn German?
The US Foreign Service Institute puts German at roughly 828 hours of study to reach professional working proficiency for an English speaker. At two lessons a week plus homework — call it five hours — that is about 3.2 years. Conversational comfort arrives much earlier, usually somewhere between a fifth and a quarter of the way in.
How much do German lessons cost?
Each German teacher decides which lesson lengths they offer and sets a price for each — you see both before booking. Many teachers also sell lesson packages at their own price, usually cheaper per lesson. If you are still choosing, you can top up your wallet instead and spend the balance with any teacher — nothing is tied to one person.
Should I learn German with a native speaker?
For pronunciation, idiom and register, yes — a native ear catches things a textbook cannot. For grammar explanations early on, a teacher who learned German as a second language themselves is often clearer, because they remember finding it hard. Many learners use both, and there is no rule against switching.
Can I learn German from absolute zero?
Yes. Filter for teachers who work with beginners and your first lessons will be run partly in a language you already share, shifting into German as you gain ground. You do not need to prepare anything beforehand.
Which German exams can I prepare for?
Teachers on KoloLingo prepare learners for TestDaF (Test Deutsch als Fremdsprache), Goethe-Zertifikat (Goethe-Institut German certification), telc (telc Deutsch — German certificates issued by telc), DTZ (Deutsch-Test für Zuwanderer, the integration course's scaled A2–B1 German test), ÖSD (Österreichisches Sprachdiplom Deutsch), DSH (Deutsche Sprachprüfung für den Hochschulzugang), Fachsprachprüfung (Fachsprachprüfung for doctors trained abroad (German state chambers)), DTB (Deutsch-Test für den Beruf (BAMF / telc)). Exam-prep teachers mark to the real rubric and plan backwards from your test date.
Free German guides
All German guides →- GrammarA1–B1
German cases explained: what nominative, accusative, dative and genitive actually do
German cases mark the job a noun does in the sentence. Here is what each case is for, the article tables, and how to work out which one you need.
- CostAny level
How much do German lessons cost?
What platforms publish for German tutors, why a tutor in Zurich costs 40% more than one in Berlin for the same language, and what decides the bill.
- ExamA1–C2
Goethe-Zertifikat levels explained: six exams, and the four you can split
The Goethe-Institut's own timings for A1 to C2, which levels split into modules, what each passes at, and the 2026 German price table: A1 €155 to C2 €359.
- ExamB1
telc Deutsch B1 or Goethe-Zertifikat B1? The same level, two different exams
Both certify B1 German and are not the same exam: the subtest telc has and Goethe does not, how far apart the parts may be sat, and who answers first.
- ExamB1
The Einbürgerungstest: 310 published questions, 33 on the day, and you need 17
Germany's citizenship test draws 33 of 310 published questions; 17 pass. Why the state questions matter most, the €25 fee and the result wait. 5 Oct 2026.
- ExamB2–C1
The TestDaF has no pass mark, because it refuses to decide
The TestDaF publishes no pass mark at all. What TDN 3, 4 and 5 mean, the 0–20 scale, and why your university is the one that decides. Read 31 Aug 2026.
- ExamB1
German for citizenship: B1 in four countries, proved four different ways
Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Liechtenstein all ask for B1 German to naturalise, but name different exams and exemptions. The laws, read 2026.
- ExamB1
Austria's B1 Integrationsprüfung: one sitting, five subtests, and Sprechen you cannot miss
Austria's B1 integration exam: 140 min written, a 16-min paired oral, €176 at the ÖIF. You need Sprechen, one more module and the values part. Oct 2026.
- ExamB1
The fide test: Switzerland's own language test, A1 to B1, and what each permit needs
Switzerland's fide test: 40-min oral, 60-min written, CHF 250, or one part alone. Which level each permit and naturalisation needs. Read Oct 2026.
- ExamA2–B1
The DTZ: one test that awards A2 or B1, and B1 needs your speaking to get there
The DTZ grades you A2 or B1 in one sitting. Points per part, the rule that speaking must reach B1, who can sit it, retakes, and why B1 matters.
- ExamA1–C2
ÖSD exams explained: the pass marks for B1, B2 and C1, which modules can be taken alone, and where an ÖSD certificate counts
ÖSD B1 passes module by module at 60 of 100. B2 and C1 need 60% overall plus a minimum in every skill. What counts in Austria and Germany, and retakes.
- ExamB2–C1
DSH explained: DSH-1, DSH-2 and DSH-3 at 57, 67 and 82%, the 2:2:1:2 weighting, and why a strong oral cannot rescue the written paper
DSH-2, the level for unrestricted admission, needs 67% in the written exam AND 67% in the oral. Grammar is only 1 of 7 parts of the written weighting.
- ExamB1–B2
telc Deutsch B1·B2 Pflege explained: the nursing German exam, the point bands, and why speaking decides whether you get B2
telc Pflege gives B1 or B2 from one exam. B2 needs 75 of 100 in speaking plus B2 in either the written test or writing. Retakes are whole-exam only.
- ExamC1
telc Deutsch C1 Hochschule explained: 60% in both parts, the 214-point scale, and the twelve-month window to retake one part
telc C1 Hochschule: 99 of 166 written and 29 of 48 oral, 128 of 214 overall. Fail one part and you can retake only that part within twelve months.
- ExamOrientated to C1
Fachsprachprüfung for doctors in Germany: three 20-minute parts, a fee from €420 to €600, and a pass rule that depends on your chamber
Six German states, read first-party: the same three 20-minute parts, fees from €420 to €600, and two different pass rules. What changes with your chamber.
- ExamA2–C1
Deutsch-Test für den Beruf (DTB) explained: the 144 of 240 B2 pass rule, the one weak skill you can carry, and who runs the exam
DTB B2 needs 144 of 240, and three of the four skills above 60%. One skill between 40% and 60% can be carried. Format and points from telc's model test.
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